We Have A Reason
by Moogle Princess
Summary: The characters take a break from fighting to decide what is keeping them with Avalanche til the end.
1. What Are We Fighting For?

We Have A Reason  
What Are We Fighting For?

The bridge of the Highwind was surprisingly somber considering the victory Avalanche had just won. Hojo was dead. President Rufas Shinra was assumed dead. Without Shinra Inc., there would be no one to run the Mako Reactors. Once Meteor was gone and Sephiroth was defeated, the Planet would finally have its chance to heal. Once Sephiroth was defeated…

Cloud turned to look back at the other members of Avalanche. It was hard to believe that they had only been a team for a few short months. So much had changed in those months. Some memories were happy - times when the world seemed normal. In those moments they were all just friends enjoying life. Then, in a flash, the world was coming down around their ears again. Somehow they had managed to keep going through everything.

In the corner, Yuffie stood with her arms wrapped around her body. The toe of her bright orange sneakers scuffed against the floor. She was never still. Even now when she thought no one was watching, her foot was swinging and her fingers were tapping against her ribs. Her eyes, stormy grey in color, were studying the floor under her feet and she chewed on her lower lip, deep in thought. It was a side of herself that she tried to keep to herself… and, Cloud had to admit, she did a good job.

As if she realized that some one was watching her, Yuffie looked up at Cloud. She wrinkled her nose at him and then stuck out her tongue. When Cloud did not immediately look away, her eyebrows arched slightly and her expression showed amusement. Cloud remembered the awkward date that Yuffie had dragged him on at the Gold Saucer and the even more awkward kiss that they shared on the gondola. He quickly looked away, not wanting to give the ninja girl the wrong idea. He thought he heard Yuffie snicker, but he wasn't sure.

His eyes strayed to Barret where he stood by the window. Ever since Barret had heard that Shinra had kidnapped his daughter, he had been quiet and almost withdrawn. His gun-arm hung limply at his side, useless now that the battle was over. He reached up rubbing his tired eyes before looking back out the window. Anyone who knew him knew he wanted nothing more than to get back to Marlene. He looked at Cloud in the reflection of the glass and gave him a tired smile and nod.

Cloud smiled back, but Barret's gaze was back on the ground again. Red XII sighed and settled himself on the ground near Yuffie's feet. Ever since their last trip to Cosmo Canyon, Red had been preoccupied. There was more going on at Cosmo Canyon then Red had let on and he wanted to be back to take care of it.

The smoke from Cid's cigarette caught Cloud's attention. The pilot was staring ahead intently, the cigarette hanging from his lips. It did not even seem as though he was inhaling any smoke. No one really knew what Cid was waiting for. He had his ship, he had his revenge, what was keeping him?

Cloud wondered the same about Vincent. He had joined Avalanche for the sole purpose of killing Hojo. Cloud glanced at Vincent out of the corner of his eye. He leaned against the wall, his arms crossed. Although the collar of his cloak covered most of his face, Cloud could see the triumph in his eyes. Hojo was dead and Lucrecia was avenged. So why was he still here?

Tifa was sitting with her back against the wall. Her eyes were closed and her breathing slow and deep. Cloud knew she had not been sleeping well since they had fallen into the Lifestream. More than anything, he wanted to end everything so that Tifa could finally rest. He knew that she would keep going until she had nothing left. They all would.

Cait Sith fidgeted nervously. He had been for almost ten minutes while Reeve was away from the controls. Sometimes Cloud could not help but be impressed by the details that Reeve programmed into the robotic cat. There were times Cloud forgot that Cait Sith was a robot. Ever since the Gold Saucer, Cait Sith had done his best to give Avalanche information to keep them one step ahead of Shinra. Cloud was forced to admit that having someone inside Shinra Inc. made their lives easier.

Suddenly Cait Sith let out a cheer. His voice crackled through his voice box, "Shinra's... finished."

On the bridge everyone let out a sigh of relief. Yuffie grinned and pumped her fist into the air. She knelt down next to Red and threw her arms around his neck. The red beast chuckled and a silly grin spread across his face. Barret helped Tifa to her feet and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. That was what they had been working for all this time. Cid laughed, glad to hear that Shinra finally got what had been coming to them. Vincent didn't move off the wall, but by the way his eyes crinkled slightly everyone could tell that he was smiling under his cloak.

Cloud crossed his arms and walked toward the huge windows at the head of the ship. Clouds rolled by the windows as the Highwind cut through the air. Meteor hung low in the sky giving everything an eerie reddish tint. It was a reminder that only half of their problems were taken care of. Cloud sighed, he did not want to ruin the small happiness that everyone had found. There was still so much to be done and everyone was at the end of their energy. They needed to do something. He looked back at the others, "Meteor's gonna fall in about..."

"Seven more days." Red XIII shook his mane out nervously, "That's what Grandfather said."

"Red XIII..." Cloud crossed the bridge and knelt in front of Red, "You want to see everyone in Cosmo Canyon again?"

"Yes…" Red admitted quietly, looking away in embarrassment.

Cloud stood and looked at Barret, "You want to see Marlene, right?"

"Don't ask me that." Barret replied harshly, a pained look in his eyes.

"We'll beat Sephiroth... then, if we don't release the power of Holy in seven days... there won't be a planet left to protect." Cloud shrugged helplessly, "If we can't beat Sephiroth... It's as good as death for us. We'll just go a few days sooner than the rest who'll die from Meteor."

"Don't be thinkin' you're gonna lose before ya even fight!" Barret cried, slamming his gun-arm into his hand.

Cloud walked over to Barret, shaking his head, "No! What I meant was... what are we all fighting for?"

Everyone got quiet and gave Cloud their full attention. He looked from person to person, carefully choosing his words, "I want us all to understand that. Save the planet... for the future of the planet... sure, that's all fine. But is that really how it is?

"For me, this is a personal feud." He stepped forwards putting a hand to his chest, "I want to beat Sephiroth... and settle my past. Saving the planet just happens to be a part of that. I've been thinking. I think we all are fighting for ourselves. For ourselves... and that someone... something... whatever it is, that's important to us. That's what we're fighting for. That's why we keep up this battle for the planet."

Barret scratched the back of his head, a nervous gesture he often made unconsciously, "You're right... It sounds cool sayin' it's to save the planet. But I was the one who blew up that Mako reactor... lookin' back on it now, I can see that wasn't the right way to do things. I made a lot of friends and innocent bystanders suffer... At first, it was for revenge against Shinra. For attackin' my town. But now... Yeah. I'm fightin' for Marlene. For Marlene... For Marlene's future... Yeah... I guess I want to save the planet for Marlene's sake..."

Cloud nodded in understanding, "Go and see her. Make sure you're right, and come back. All of you. Get off the ship and find out your reasons for yourselves. I want you to make sure. Then I want you to come back."

Cid expelled a cloud of smoke into the air, "Maybe ain't none of us'll come back. Meteor's just gonna kill us all anyway. Let's just forget any useless struggling!"

"I know why I'm fighting. I'm fighting to save the planet, and that's that." Cloud shrugged again, "But besides that, there's something personal too... a very personal memory that I have. What about you all? I want all of you to find that something within yourselves. If you don't find it, then that's okay too. You can't fight without a reason, right? So, I won't hold it against you if you don't come back."

When no one said anything, Cloud jammed his hands into his pockets and walked off the bridge. Tifa looked around at everyone before running after Cloud. Cid rubbed the back of his neck and turned to the pilots beside him, "You heard the man. Take these people where they want to go and then get the hell out of my sight. If you wanna come back in a week then come back… if not, then fuck off. Clear?"

The pilots saluted Cid and turned to set a course. Yuffie stepped forward first, "There's a pathway a mile or so outside of Wutai… I- I can give you the coordinates."

Barret looked over at Cait Sith with a snort, "Okay, Shinra man, where's my little girl at?"

"Kalm." Cait Sith replied, "That's where we moved them a few days ago. There's a little house that Shinra owns."

"Take me there, then." Barret said gruffly before walking off the bridge.

Red padded toward the pilots, "I would like to be dropped in Cosmo Canyon, please."

"There's a cave near Junon." Vincent said quietly, not moving from his place against the wall, "That is my destination."

The pilot turned to Cid, "Captain?"

"Fuck." Cid dropped his cigarette and crushed it under the heel of his boot, "I don't know yet. Just start flying and I'll tell you once I know."

A.N. This chapter is dedicated to Sienna03 who reminded me that you should never just post something to get on to the next part. Speaking of the next part it's up too for your reading pleasure.


	2. For My Mother

We Have A Reason  
For My Mother.

Thunder rumbled off in the distance. The pale gray eyes of Yuffie Kisaragi looked up at the storm clouds gathering. She wrapped her arms around her knees more tightly and rested her chin back on her arms. Deep down, she knew she should make the trip down Da Chao to Wutai. She also knew that if she went to Wutai she would have to spend the storm with her father in the Pagoda of the Five Gods. Yuffie was anxious to get back home for the week, but she'd wait out this storm on Da Chao.

She had spent the whole day sitting on Da Chao trying to decide what she was fighting for. Ideas had come and gone, but none seemed good enough. Her first thought had been, "I'm fighting for Wutai!" As the future Empress of Wutai she should be fighting to save her people. It felt… false. She was still too young to really care about her duty to her country. "I'm fighting for me! I don't wanna die!" Yuffie smirked at that idea. While it was true, it was not the force driving her to fight with Avalanche. So what was it?

Lighting flashed across the sky and thunder rolled making Yuffie shiver. She had hated storms ever since she was a child. Storms always made her think of the final days of the war and her mother. Even now, years later she could still hear her mother's voice in her ear, telling her to wake up and run.

As she and her mother ran through the doors of the Pagoda, rain began to fall. The doors slammed shut behind them and the royal guards took up positions to defend the bottom floor. Lady Naomi took Yuffie by the hand and nearly dragged her up the stairs. On the top floor, Naomi felt along the wall for a seam to the hidden room built in case of emergency. The door slid open and Naomi pulled Yuffie into the room.

"Hush my darling." Naomi whispered, pulling Yuffie into her lap, "We must be silent. You father said that he would return for us when it was safe."

For the first time in her life, six-year-old Yuffie listened when told to be quiet. Naomi smiled down at her daughter, tucking a few stray strands of chocolate colored hair out of her fearful gray eyes. Before Naomi's own mother had died the year before, she had often said Yuffie looked just like Naomi had as a child. Naomi was looking forward to seeing her daughter grow into a beautiful woman and ruler of Wutai.

The sound of a door slamming against the wall downstairs made Naomi and Yuffie stiffen. The fighting sounded fierce and Naomi closed her eyes in a silent prayer to Leviathan for strength. Suddenly the battle stopped. The sound of slow footsteps echoed off the walls of the Pagoda. Naomi shifted Yuffie off of her lap and onto the floor.

"Someone has broken into the Pagoda." Naomi murmured. She turned to Yuffie," Mama's has to go protect the Pagoda. You must sit here and be silent."

"Yes Mama." Yuffie said, straightening her nightgown so she could sit on the floor.

Naomi unclasped a necklace from around her neck, a red orb catching the faint light in the room. She put the necklace around her daughter's neck and tucked it underneath her shirt, "You must protect the Leviathan materia for me. Give it to your father when he comes for you."

Yuffie touched the materia through her nightgown, "No one will take it from me, Mama."

"That's because you are my daughter." Naomi said, smoothing her hand over Yuffie's hair, "Never forget that."

Yuffie crept to the door to peek out at the main room. She saw her mother take a katana off the wall. Ever since Shinra Inc. had invaded Wutai, Naomi had stopped wearing the traditional style kimono of the Empress of Wutai. Instead she took up a Western style dress that allowed her mobility while still being feminine. Tonight she was grateful for that. She knew that she would need the extra mobility. Naomi drew in a deep breath and waited for the intruders.

The door slammed open and three men walked into the room. The tallest signaled the other two to wait by the door. He walked to the center of the room, eyeing the blade in Naomi's hand.

"Stand aside and you will not be harmed." Sephiroth said in clear Wutian.

"I cannot do that, General Sephiroth." Naomi replied in fluent common, adjusting the grip on her sword, "You have destroyed my country and slaughtered many of my people. I cannot stand by and allow you to defile the Pagoda as well.

Yuffie's eyes widened. This was the Great General Sephiroth who was ravaging their country? He was tall with broad shoulders, but still slender for a man. His hair was longer than even her mother's was and silver in color. The most striking thing about him were his eyes. They were shaped like a cat and glowed green in the darkness.

Lightning lit up the room as Sephiroth bowed to Naomi, "Lady Kisaragi. I am impressed by your bravery. Few would stand against me when I offer them freedom."

Yuffie knew she would never forget the fight that followed. Naomi was a woman who was both beautiful and deadly. She had been trained on the sword from the time she was strong enough to wield it. Rumor was Sephiroth had been trained in the same way. While he knew how to use many weapons, he preferred a sword.

Together they moved as if they were dancing rather than fighting. Sephiroth's sword sliced through the air. Naomi rolled and dodged before smoothly countering Sephiroth's attack. The fight continued for several long minutes, then the moment came when the lesser swordsman fell. Sephiroth's blade caught the hem of Naomi's skirt, tearing it. Naomi's foot caught in the fabric, causing her to pitch forward onto Sephiroth's blade.

Sephiroth looked down almost mournfully at Lady Kisaragi as he pulled his blade from her chest. He pulled a rag from his pocket and wiped the blood from his blade.

"It's not here." Sephiroth said to the Soldiers who had accompanied him, "She knew we were coming tonight. She'll have it well hidden away already."

Yuffie knew she should stay hidden, but she could not force her body to stay still. She slid out of the hidden passageway and ran to her mother's body. Yuffie slid to the floor, tugging on her mother's skirt. Tears flooded her eyes. It seemed as though her mother were only sleeping. No matter how Yuffie tried, Naomi would not wake.

One of the guards unsheathed his sword and walked toward Yuffie. Sephiroth scowled darkly at the man, "Leave her."

"B-But sir!" The man stammered, "Orders were to kill any member of the ruling family."

Sephiroth looked down at Yuffie, sitting in a pool of her mother's blood, clutching a tattered skirt in her hand. Her eyes were bright and unafraid… so like the late Empress. His eyes softened slightly for a moment before looking back at the guard.

"I do not care." Sephiroth said coldly, "My orders are to leave her. Are you going to disobey me?"

The guard quickly sheathed his sword, "No sir."

Sephiroth glanced back at Yuffie again before leading the two Soldiers out of the Pagoda. Yuffie could not remember how long she sat there before she heard the pounding footsteps of her father. He ran into the room, his eyes coming to rest on Yuffie and Naomi. Yuffie's hand still clutched in Naomi's skirt, her teary eyes looking to her father for reassurance. Godo sank down beside them, crying for the first and only time Yuffie could remember.

It did not matter how honorable he was, Yuffie knew she would never forgive Sephiroth. He was the one who had killed her mother, ruined her father, and destroyed Wutai. After her mother's death, Yuffie threw herself into intense training. She hoped be as skilled as her mother was with enough practice. One day she would avenge her mother and her country.

Yuffie shook herself back into reality as the first raindrops fell. She collected her pack and shuriken before retreating into Da Chao's Fire Caverns. Home would wait a few hours now that she knew what she was fighting for.

A.N. Hopefully I'll have the time to sit down and crank out the other parts of the story in the next few weeks. Hope you enjoyed Yuffie's piece.


	3. Why Am I Here?

We Have A Reason  
Why Am I Here?

Vincent stepped out of Lucrecia's Cavern blinking at the light of the setting sun. He had spent the better part of the day in the dark of the cave. Lucrecia was gone… or if she was still alive she was not coming out to speak with him again. Either way, he told her that Hojo was dead. He felt that she deserved to know. An hour or so after arriving at the cavern, Vincent settled down on the stone steps to think. Five hours later he had not come to any earth-shattering conclusions, so he decided a change in scenery would do him some good.

Now that he was outside he was faced with a bit of a dilemma. Unless he wanted to take a swim, there was nowhere to go. The caves surrounded the lake in a nearly complete circle. The lake emptied into the ocean by way of a river. Finally Vincent looked upwards. The walls were not so high that he could not climb.

For the first time since he had woken up, Vincent undid the clasps on his gauntlet and took it off. He glanced down at it, mildly amused. Everyone seemed to be under the impression that Hojo had chopped off his arm at the elbow and replaced it with the gold claw. He would not have put it past the deranged scientist, but thankfully Hojo's lab in Nibelheim did not have the equipment needed for such an operation. That did not stop him from scaring and mutilating the hand and arm under the gauntlet. Vincent was glad that Hojo was unaware of his ability to shoot just as well with one hand as he could with the other. Had Hojo known, Vincent was sure that the other arm would have had the same treatment.

Hojo had provided him with a long, black leather glove to cover his scarred arm and hand. A small kindness, Vincent supposed. He let the gauntlet drop to the ground and quickly climbed the wall. The stone above the cave's entrance made a kind of shelf. It was almost perfect to sit on. After a moment, Vincent reached up and undid the buckles holding his cloak closed. He pushed the heavy red material off of his shoulders and stretched.

The sun slipped over the horizon as Vincent settled himself on top of the cavern. He folded his cloak and slid it under his head for a pillow. As he watched the sky fade from pinks and oranges to violet and finally blue-black. The first stars came out in the sky and Vincent felt his lips quirk up in a tiny smile. He had not realized how much he missed looking up at the stars. Stargazing was an activity that he had enjoyed when he was younger and less burdened. It was funny how little the stars had changed in thirty years. The constellations were still the same. Only a few stars had noticeably burnt out. There was something about staring up into the sky that had always relaxed him.

His mind turned back to the matter at hand. What was he fighting for. Vincent shook his head. A reason to fight? One fought because they had to. Was survival no longer an important enough reason? Cloud had wanted them to find something personal to fight for. With a sigh Vincent turned his mind to that. Something personal...

The obvious answer was Lucrecia. She was what drove his life both before and after he had been locked away. She was a pretty young woman, not a ravishing beauty or any nonsense like that. Her hair was long and a honey brown color. Vincent remembered it much lighter, bleached out by the harsh lab lights. Lucrecia always wore it twined up in a yellow hair ribbon. She was slender and willowy, without much of a figure.

As a Turk, Vincent spent a good deal of time out and about on President Shinra's assignments. He was good at what he did. Just before his thirtieth birthday, Vincent was assigned to guard Professor Hojo and Professor Gast in Nibelheim while they worked on the Jenova Project. It was almost like a vacation for him. He took his job very seriously, but there was almost no job for him.

He could not help his attraction to their lab assistant Lucrecia Crecent. Even thirty years later, Vincent could remember clearly how his stomach had knotted every time Lucrecia looked at him. He could think of countless days spent watching Lucrecia out of the corner of his eye as she worked in the lab. There was something soft and graceful about her - very unscientific. He often wondered why she was a scientist in the first place. She hardly seemed to fit the type.

Whenever she had errands to run, Vincent made sure that he was free to walk her to and from town. Often, she would spend her free time and meals talking with him. They quickly became close. It was unprofessional, but Vincent could hardly ignore his feelings. One day he went to her lab to ask her out for dinner. Seeing his father's information on the screen had been a surprise to him.

Before his father's death, Vincent loved Grimore. He was a cheerful, busy man with an easy smile. He refused to let Shinra get to him. As a young man, Vincent had made full use of Shinra's training facilities while his father worked. No one was surprised when the Turks approached him. Vincent knew Grimore had his reservations, but an accident had claimed his father's life before he had been able to talk to him about it.

Training to be a Turk had kept Vincent from losing himself to depression. He threw himself into his training without restraint. The coldness that was beaten into him as he became a Turk helped him through the loss of his father. He quickly became the best at what he did. That is why he had been assigned to work with Hojo, Gast, and Lucrecia in the first place.

When Lucrecia found him looking at the screen she panicked and fled. Vincent followed her and forced her to stop and talk to him. She admitted to being involved in the accident that had killed his father. She had been his assistant before working with Gast and Hojo. The fact that she had been there when Grimore was killed hurt, but he knew that accidents could happen. His father's job was hardly a safe one. There was probably no way Lucrecia could have prevented it.

Vincent had told her as much. His father died saving her life. It was his way. Grimore would want him to keep living his life... and he cared for her. Vincent asked her to go to dinner with him. Just one dinner. The guilt had been too much for Lucrecia to bear. She pulled away from him and ran again... straight into Hojo's arms.

Lucrecia had done the one thing that she knew would keep him from her. She threw herself into Hojo's sick little projects. She let Hojo impregnate her and donated the child's life to science. Then she claimed it was what she wanted. Vincent would never believe it. He could not believe that of the women he loved.

Vincent's mind came back to the present. His life had spiraled out of control after that. Even if he deserved to be tortured by the memories, Vincent could not bring himself to delve into those thoughts again. The world was hanging on the edge. In seven short days, existence would be wiped out if they failed. His personal failures could not cloud his vision. There would be eternity to suffer his mistakes as long as he did not make any more.

If not Lucrecia, what was he fighting for? Vincent knew he was going to fight. He had made that decision the moment Hojo was dead. Vincent smiled cruelly. That was secretly what he had been craving for thirty years, Hojo's death. He had his revenge against the monster who had ruined so many lives. For a few moments after the fight, he had been a little lost. Then, just as his purpose had been fulfilled, another fight had come along. The Turk in him had jumped at the chance to keep on fighting.

He was surprised to find liked having a purpose. A small part of him was shocked to find that the thought of returning to Nibelhiem and sleeping away his life made his stomach turn unpleasantly. Vincent wanted to stay awake, he wanted to keep fighting.

Why?

The question buzzed around in his mind unpleasantly. A dark frown crossed his face and his eyes drifted shut. A reason was irrelevant. He was going to fight and had decided it already. Still, his mind wanted a reason. It would not accept Lucrecia. Her fight was over and she was gone. He could not fight for himself. There was not enough in him to fight for his own life. He did not know the members of Avalanche well enough to dedicate the fight to them. So what was it?

Maybe it was all of it...

The frown smoothed out as that thought crossed his mind. Maybe he did not have one specific thing he was fighting for. The things of his life were long gone. Family... friends... anything he had known had withered and died in the thirty years he had been locked away. A part of him longed for what he knew before Hojo had tainted everything.

Vincent's eye opened again. He was wrong... his fight was hardly over. There was one man at the root of everyone's problems. Hojo. Hojo had taken something from every member of their group. Not even death had stopped Hojo from terrorizing the planet. Even Sephiroth, who was bent on destroying the world, had been ruined by Hojo. If Hojo had been stopped sooner, the planet would not be in danger now.

As long as Hojo was still causing pain, his fight could never be over. He would fight for the suffering Lucrecia had endured. He would fight for Aeris and the other lives that had been ended by Hojo's insanity. He would even fight for Sephiroth... He would kill Sephiroth to release him from the madness that Hojo had beaten into him. Vincent vowed to erase as much of Hojo's mark on the planet as possible.

A reason was unnecessary, but Vincent could now see why Cloud deemed it so important. It gave him focus... a sharpness he would not have had otherwise. One dull moment from any of them could be disastrous.

Vincent looked back up at the stars, feeling peace wash over him. He would give himself one night of reflection and relaxation. In the morning he would clean his gun and put his affairs in order. Then, he would return to the Highwind and wait for the others. In less than a week they would seek an end to what Hojo had started... but for one night he would exist for himself again. There would be time later for atonement. He was sure of it now.

A/N: This chapter is for one and only reviewer of this story foxygirlchan. I'll eventually finish this with or without being reviewed, but reviews make me smile.


	4. To Do What's Right

We Have A Reason

To Do What's Right...

...for a change.

Do you know what it means to be the Head of Urban Development? Not a damned thing. My job is right up there with Mayor Domino's. The title looks and sounds good, it pays well, but doesn't mean a goddamned thing. Looking at these seven other people, watching them think about all the stand to lose, it really puts my life into perspective. Comparatively, my life is worthless.

My birth was completely accidental. I was the son of a couple of Turks who got drunk and made some bad decisions one night. I've only seen them once or twice and I never knew their names. I could look them up if I wanted to - it's my right - but I don't actually care. My mother handed me straight to the Shinra care-taking crew once I was born. She had been anxious to get training and into active duty again... or that's what the doctor who delivered me told me years later. He didn't mention my father and I didn't ask. I'd bet he wasn't there holding my mother's hand.

I grew up in Shinra HQ. I was raised by the men and women Shinra paid to take care of the employees kids. There were a handful of orphans that the company took care of. Stories like my own, parents killed in the line of duty. Shinra never wasted people or money. They raised us with the impression that we'd work off our debts. At age ten, I became an errand boy. I ran messages for Shinra executives and helped where I was needed. In my job I saw everything.

I was twelve when Professor Gast discovered the being called Jenova. The President had no idea why the discovery was so important to the science department and that annoyed him. He wanted to know what he was shelling out money to bring in a mostly dead body. I was helping Gast's lab assistant Lucrecia when President Shinra came down and demanded an explanation from Gast. I got to hear the whole story.

Gast was one of the few honest to god good human beings I've ever met. He sat The President down and explained that Jenova was most likely descended from an ancient race of beings called the Cetra. The Cetra had the ability to draw power from the planet itself. The were the ones who first created materia. According to what some ancient texts he'd once read, their people spent their lives seeking a place called the Promised Land. It was supposed to be a place of boundless energy and peace. Gast believed they could use that energy to end the suffering of people everywhere.

He could had saved his breath, The President stopped listening at "boundless energy." He gave the go ahead for whatever Gast needed and retreated to his office to imagine the wealth to come from this.

The idea of people suffering caught my attention. I had never really wanted for anything. It had never occurred to me that there were people who didn't enjoy the same privileges I did. When I asked Gast about it, he ruffled my hair and told me not to worry about it. It was Lucrecia who directed me to talk to the Head of Urban Development if I was really interested.

For five years I kept myself in the thick of Shinra's dealings. I still remember when Hojo and Gast brought baby Sephiroth back from Nibelheim. The whole experiment caused an uproar at HQ... especially since Lucrecia, the supposed mother of Sephiroth, and Vincent Valentine, on the Shinra's best Turks, had died.

Professor Hojo was an associate of Gast's who had joined in what was being called the Jenova Project. He was an aggressive man with bold ideas. He told President Shinra that Sephiroth was his biological son and as Lucrecia had died, it was his choice whether or not to keep Sephiroth in the Project. The only one with the power to stop Hojo was Gast and for some reason he didn't. After coming back from Nibelheim, he threw himself into studying the Cetra and turned a blind eye to what Hojo did. Things only got worse as the years wore on.

It was six years before he took a stand. Hojo had found a living Cetra woman in Mideel. He sent the Turks to have her brought to the lab. When Gast found the woman in a holding cell, he immediately demanded that Hojo release her. Hojo was forced to bow to his power as Department Head. Gast handed his resignation in to President Shinra the next day and took the woman with him when he left. Hojo was furious when he heard.

I heard the story, of course, but at the time I was busy making my own conquest. Even seven years later, Lucrecia's advice had stayed with me. At the age of nineteen I went and introduced myself to the Head of Urban Development. Shilah was a tired old man who the years had not treated kindly. He let me ask questions about the state of Midgar and the suffering of the people.

At the end of the afternoon, Shilah mentioned that he was looking for an assistant. He offered me the job and I took it happily. I worked with the man for two years. At the end of that time he retired and recommended me for his job. President Shinra gave me the job, no questions asked.

Now I realize that it was because he couldn't have cared less, but at the time I was thrilled. After all my hard work for the company, I was finally being given my chance. I imagined all the good I could do for the poor. I was so hopelessly optimistic. Until my first board meeting.

In the first few days I had my position, I read through all of Shilah's reports. The number of people living below the plate was disturbing and the descriptions of the living conditions turned my stomach. One report described a brothel in the Wall Market. Another was full of pictures of Sector Two. There were pictures of children wearing rags and picking pockets, dirty women standing on corners in little more than underwear, and people just looking miserable. There was garbage and twisted metal littering the streets. The whole lower section was unfit for human life and yet it was twice as populated as the upper plate.

I worked for a week on plans to start cleaning up the slums. With a couple thousand dollars and a hundred workers, I could open food kitchens in every sector. The pimp that lived in Wall Market needed to be removed. The young men of the slums could be hired to remove the trash and build cheap housing for the people beneath the slums. Shinra Incorporated made millions of dollars each year, I was sure that there was more money that could be spared for the Urban Development budget - which was surprisingly small.

At the board meeting that week when the President asked for my report, I launched into all the plans that I had made and asked for extra funding. I heard one of the other Executives smother a chuckle as I talked, but President Shinra waited patiently for me to finish. When I was done, he commended me on my attitude but smoothly informed me that there was no money to be spared. Most of the company's research and development funding was going to the Science department and the "Neo-Shinra" project.

I didn't let that deter me. The next week I came back with a plan that accomplished almost everything I wanted to at half the cost. Shinra gave me the exact same answer with the exact same wording as before. I nodded and sat back down. This went on for a whole year. Fifty two weeks. At the end of the fifty second meeting where Shinra had humiliated me in front of everyone else, I went back to my office and slumped down at my desk. I finally understood why Shilah did so little and looked like he did.

When I looked up again it was to see a heavyset man leaning against my door frame. He was smiling with sympathy. Once I acknowledged him, he introduced himself as Domino, mayor of Midgar.

The man was mayor in name only, his job had been stripped from him when Shinra started taking power. They kept him around for appearances, but once he died or resigned there would be no mayor of Midgar. We sat and talked all afternoon and by the end I knew I found someone I could confide in. I stopped pitching ideas at meetings and spent the better part of my days in Domino's office.

On some levels I admired Domino. He was a young jaded man who was bound and determined to stick it to Shinra as best as he could while he was alive. He ordered the finest food and charged it to the company. As far as Shinra or anyone else knew Domino spent his days stuffing his face, but he told me that he had most of the food shipped to several families under the plate. He also liked to go to restaurants below the plate and leave large tips for the waitresses. It wasn't much but it was something.

Domino's main job was to keep Shinra's files in order. His office was connected to the Shinra Library. One of his other pleasures was ordering random, useless books. He managed to spend several thousand dollars a year on books that would serve Shinra little purpose. He kept them in a bookcase near his office. I remember skimming over the titles. Some of them really made me laugh... Cooking for Dummies, Unbridled Desires, Everyone Learns to Use The Potty, and Duffie: Slayer of the Vampires. Then I found one called Even You Can Build A Robot! It sounded really interesting.

Domino said I could take it and keep it as long as I liked. In the years that followed, I studied electronics and robotics. I did what I could to better Midgar, but it seemed like the harder I tried the less I got done. I watched as Shinra moved to take the last bit of freedom from the world, Wutai. I surprised to hear that the attack was being led by the newly appointed Soldier General, Sephiroth. I hadn't really heard anything much about him after Gast left. Once Hojo was in charge of the Science department, I avoided the labs as much as humanly possible.

Wutai didn't stand a chance. Word came back that Sephiroth had killed the Empress of Wutai and that the Emperor has surrendered quickly after. Shinra Incorporated now controlled the world. I still don't understand how an electric company had managed to do so much. In the years that followed, I had my first robot up and running. He was a robotic kitten that I called Cait Sith, named for the Fairy Cat out of an ancient story. I had always wanted a cat, but we weren't allowed to have pets in HQ, so I programmed one.

After a while I programmed speech into the cat. A slight hiccup caused the cat to speak in an accent. I couldn't make his voice unaccented English, so the accent stuck. I gave him a crown and a cape and let him run loose in my office and in Domino's library. Along the way he found a megaphone and shouted things at the secretaries that walked through the hallways. Everyone seemed to be amused by my little toy.

Then five years after Wutai submitted, a faulty reactor caught fire and burnt down Nibelheim, killing Sephiroth and a squad of Soldiers. I knew there was more to it, but everyone involved was very tight lipped about it. Imagine my surprise when Sephiroth returned from the dead a few months ago and killed the president.

I had never thought I'd be so happy to hear that a man had died. Sephiroth had done what I could only wish to do. One of his last orders had been to drop the Sector Seven plate in hopes of killing off a group of terrorists calling themselves Avalanche.

Rufas Shinra took power after his father's death. One of his first acts had been to come to me with a plan. Shinra needed several members of Avalanche. Aeris Gainsborough was the last living Cetra and Hojo was practically foaming at the mouth to have her. Another escaped experiment that Hojo referred to as Red XIII was traveling in their company. Tifa Lockheart and Barret Wallace were at the head of Avalanche. Cloud Strife was a mercenary who was one of the sole survivors of the Nibelheim tragedy that Hojo had been monitoring until he had disappeared.

Rufas had seen and talked to Cait Sith on one of his visits to HQ. He promised me more money for Urban Development and freedom to do what I pleased if I would reprogram the cat as a spy and infiltrate Avalanche. From reports that Rufas had read, Avalanche was currently tracking Sephiroth. If Shinra Inc. had a spy with them, they could watch the terrorists and find Sephiroth at the same time. With such a sweet prize dangling in front of me, I could not resist the offer. Plus, Avalanche had been behind the reactor bombings in Midgar. The bombs had killed uncounted numbers of people who lived near the reactors.

I made Cait Sith combat ready and programmed some other neat tricks into him before I sent him on his way. He waited at the Gold Saucer for Avalanche and invited himself into their party. I never expected to feel anything for the people in that group. As far as I was concerned they were murderers and deserved whatever punishment they got. Then Cait Sith began to actually talk to the different people that made up the group.

I instantly fell in love with Aeris Gainsborough. Well, not it any sort of romantic sense. She was one of the most kind hearted people I had ever met and she loved Cait Sith. She played with him as if he were a real cat. I could not imagine turning her over to Hojo. Something about her reminded me of Professor Gast. It wouldn't be until after her death that I would discover why. She was the man's daughter. I did what I could to protect her with Cait Sith, but she didn't need much protection.

Cloud did more than his fair share to keep the girl from harm. He did the same for all the girls in the group. The love triangle that had sprung up between him, Aeris and Tifa was one of the most humorous things I have ever seen. It was like a television sitcom, but better.

Tifa was quick witted and even tempered. Her skills as a martial artist were unlike any I had ever seen. She hardly seemed like a terrorist. If not for the pictures of her setting bombs and fleeing from reactors, I wouldn't believe that she was in Avalanche at all.

Barret never let anyone forget that he was part of Avalanche. He did everything he could to protect the planet from Shinra Inc. Drilling mako was killing the planet and that would one day kill everyone else. He would give his life to protect the planet, if only for the tiny brunette that he had adopted. The man was harder than anyone I had ever met, but he melted when it came to Marlene.

Then there was Yuffie. She was a ball of fire and energy unlike anything I had ever seen. She was rude, loud, and a thief. She had managed to get past Cait Sith's security several times and steal things from him. I'll never forget coming back to the monitor one morning to find Yuffie crouched in front of the robot wearing his crown and waving the cape in front of his face. She seemed to have an unhealthy obsession with the zipper on the back of Cait Sith's moogle.

Red XIII or Nanaki as he was called at Cosmo Canyon was the complete opposite of Yuffie. The lion-like creature was quiet and did not speak unless absolutely necessary. His words were given slowly as if each word were carefully selected. Just the fact that the creature could speak at all was unsettling enough. He fought fiercely to protect any member of the group that traveled with them.

Later came Vincent Valentine, the Turk who had supposedly died while working with Hojo, Gast, and Lucrecia. There seemed to be a lot of supposedly dead ex-employees popping up. Vincent wanted to put Hojo down. He would travel and fight for them if it meant he got to have his revenge on Hojo for what the scientist had done to him.

The last member to join up was Cid Highwind. I vaguely remembered Palmer mentioning the man. He worked for the failed Space Program. Like Yuffie, he was loud and rude. I'd never seen a man smoke so many cigarettes in my whole life. Still, he wanted an adventure and found it with Avalanche. If he got to strike back at Shinra Inc., that was all the better.

As we went on, I found it harder and harder to betray them. They couldn't figure out how Shinra was always one step ahead of them. I think that Rufas could tell I was wavering. As Avalanche neared the Gold Saucer for the second time, a messenger came with a note for me. It told me that the Turks had kidnapped Elmyra Gainsborough and Marlene Wallace as leverage. Rufas had never worried about what Avalanche would do should they find out that Cait Sith was the one spying on them. I knew this was a private warning for me.

I sat with them and as soon as they weren't looking, I stole the Keystone from them. I gave it to the Turks and convinced Yuffie and Cloud to pretend like nothing was wrong. I knew it would never last. We had only been traveling an hour before I noticed that Cait Sith was at the back of the formation alone. They all knew. Not even Aeris was giving Cait Sith a friendly smile. Which made sense since Shinra had her mother as a hostage.

I have never felt so guilty in my entire life. I only had minor control over Cait Sith, so he moped at the back of the line and didn't say a word to anyone. At least until they got through the Temple. I was shocked when he volunteered his robotic body to solve the puzzles. I was behind him, but he was still independent to a degree. I had no idea he had it in his programming. On one level it made me proud and on another I was even more guilty. I know I would have never been so selfless. I felt useless.

That needed to change. I set to work readying another Cait Sith, one I could control. It also had a microphone so I could speak. It still sounded like Cait Sith was talking, but I would be supplying the words. I sent it off to meet the others and it arrived just in time for me to see Cloud furiously attacking Aeris. I was floored.

The time between that point and Aeris's death went like a blur. I don't really remember it. All of us were in such a panic over Aeris's sudden disappearance that we didn't have time to think about anything else. Then we found her again kneeling at that altar, praying for all of us. In a blink she was gone... Sephiroth's sword through her.

The next few weeks were bad. Cloud's gradual descent into madness leading up to Cloud giving Sephiroth the Black Materia for a second time. Then, finding him with Mako poisoning and losing him and Tifa in the Lifestream. When the Weapons awoke, the planet went into Chaos. They would strike randomly causing damage and scaring people out of their wits.

Shinra was floundering too. No one knew what to do and Rufas wasn't giving the kind of orders he should. Each department began issuing their own orders and doing whatever they wanted. Morale would be raised by killing off the leaders of Avalanche. The Sister Ray would break the barrier Sephiroth had set up. We went weeks without hearing from Hojo and no one knew what he was up to.

As soon as I saw Meteor in the sky, Domino and I set to evacuating Midgar. Some went quickly and quietly, other refused to leave at all. I did what I could. Elmyra and Marlene were moved to Kalm and I sent a squad of Soldiers with them. Once things were settled in Midgar I went with them and moved Cait Sith's controls there. Elmyra and Marlene took comfort in watching the monitors with me sometimes. I knew Elmyra's emotions were still raw over Aeris's death, but seeing the people who fought beside her daughter somehow helped sooth her.

I listened to reports from HQ after Hojo died. There was mass chaos. Rufas had been in the President's Office when the Weapon attacked the building. No one had seen him or Scarlet. I got word from the Turks saying they were battered but had gotten the hell out of the city. Within a few hours things had gone silent.

Now, I'm watching as Cait Sith and Barret walk toward Kalm from the airship. Marlene and Elmyra are sitting beside me watching, too. Part of me is scared shitless at the thought of meeting one of the members of Avalanche face to face. After everything I've done, I don't deserve to be included in their numbers... and Barret is a big man. I hope he's forgiven me or I'm going to be beat to death before Meteor ever has the chance to fall.

The door behind me slams open as Cait Sith hops in. Marlene is out of her chair in a heartbeat and barreling into her adopted father, "Papa!"

Barret sighs in relief and tosses the little girl into the air, "I missed you."

"Missed you too!" Marlene giggles, "Mister Reeve has been letting me watch you on the screen though. Only when you're not fighting though. He says that's too bad for me to watch."

Barret's eyes turn to look at me as I pet Cait Sith in my lap. The robotic kitten is nuzzling my hand and purring. He sizes me up as he says, "That so?"

Marlene nods from her place on his broad shoulders, "Uh huh! He's been real nice to Miss Elmyra and me. He rented us this house and I even got my own room! I wanna show you!"

"You go on." Barret murmurs, putting her on the ground. His eyes never leave mine, "I wanna talk to Mister Reeve here for a second."

Elmyra stands and takes Marlene's hand, "Let's just go make sure you made your bed this morning. Let the boys talk a minute."

I swallow hard and set Cait Sith in her vacant seat. I knew this was coming. I was involved in stealing the only family Barret has left. I could have done a lot of damage by betraying all of them. With a deep breath I set myself and wait. If he wanted to take a swing at me I was going to let him. After what I put him through, I deserved worse.

Maybe he could tell I was scared or something. He shakes his head and chuckles, "Relax Shinra man. My Marlene's an honest little thing. Had she said you had done anything to mistreat her, you'd already be dead."

I know the relief is visible on my face, but I can't help it. My entire body relaxes. Barret is much bigger than I imagined him to be. He could snap me in half without really trying. He can see my relief and laughs loudly, "You're alright, man."

He extends his good hand to me and I shake it, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you face to face, Mister Wallace."

"What is this 'Mister Wallace' crap?" Barret snorts, "I'm Barret. Now I'm gonna go visit with my little girl."

He stops at the door to Marlene's room and glances back at me, "Thanks... for taking care of 'em... and getting 'em out of the Shinra building. That shithole is nowhere for them."

Marlene's outraged voice makes him grin and he goes in to be scolded. I sit back down and let Cait Sith jump back into my lap. Now I only have to wait the week out. All of my affairs are in order and I'm ready to go back. Barret's forgiven me already... it's such a release. I want the others to forgive me too. I want to help put the world back to rights. It's what I always wanted to do. Now I'm getting the chance.

Author Note: I wanna try a few different things with this set of stories. I don't get to write much in first person. I think it went okay. I may try it again with another character. Anyway I hope you enjoyed it. If not, just wait for the next part. It'll be done in a different style by a different character. Cheers!


	5. It's My Privilege

We Have A Reason

It's My Privilege.

_Nanaki, it's really bad. _

The Gi Caves were silent now, angry spirits finally at rest. Nanaki wound his way through the cave and secret passageway. It was one of the few places he could find peace now. His father stood proudly, looking over the canyon. Wary of the arrows still piercing his flank, Nanaki nuzzled his father's side in greeting.

_Ever since Bugenhagen returned from that last trip, he doesn't seem well._

His father and mother had been so brave... so strong. They had defended this valley with their lives. Bugenhagen had been as brave as one of his tribe. Protecting him and raising him from a cub to the warrior he had become. Bugenhagen had been wiser than any other human on the whole Planet.

_If you have any mission in life, it is not to defend this valley._

Why did his words not ring true? His people had protected the valley as long as history had been recorded. It was the duty of his people, handed down from one generation to the next. His own parents had died to fulfill that duty. It was moments like this that Nanaki felt his age. He was lost and confused. If his parents had lived, he would be more prepared for the world around him.

He was too young to be any good to anyone.

With a growl at his own foolishness, Nanaki cleared his mind. Yuffie was younger than he was comparatively and she carried her own weight. Sometimes she carried more than her own weight. It was not as if he was completely unprepared. Even as a child, his parents had made him ready to become a warrior. Bugenhagen had taught him the ways of the Planet when he was orphaned. The humans of the canyon had looked after him as one of their own. It was only right he do the same.

_Look at the withering mountain grass. _

Nanaki looked out into the night. There was so much worth fighting for in this spot alone. Past the painful memories and scarred caverns was a beautiful canyon. The stars shown brighter here than anywhere else on the Planet. Without the sun's bright light, the canyon's walls changed from the warm orange to a soft brown color. The rock beneath him still pulsed with the heat of the day, but the air around him cooled quickly. A breeze tossed his mane and made the beads of his comb clack against each other.

It was a soothing noise that would always remind him of his grandfather. Nanaki could feel his tense muscles begin to relax.He could practically hear his mothers soft, growling voice in his ear again. Before one could think rationally, he must put his mind and body into a comfortable place to think. No good planning would come from a frazzled mind. She had told him that often.

_Listen to the warble of the newborn chocobos._

He closed his eyes and meditated - a skill Yuffie had taught him one night. The breeze whistled through the rocks nearby. Nanaki could just barely make out the sounds of the village going about their night if he listened for it. The joy of coming home had been tainted a bit by the villagers' worries. Everyone had questioned him endlessly. Had Sephiroth won? Was there any chance of defeating him? Would that save the Planet from Meteor?

None of the questions had good solid answers. Nanaki did what he could to reassure the people of the canyon that everything would be okay without lying to them. His people were uneasy but trusted him to see them through the danger.

A small smile came to his lips. His people. They were his people.

_Look always to the eternal flow of time which is far greater than the span of a human life. _

_It will teach you more than staying here in the valley..._

He had learned so much from the humans in his life. He wished more of his tribe had survived. There was so much to be learned from humans. Even more could have been learned from the Cetra. Nanaki felt the loss of Aeris keenly. Not only was she a friend and teammate, but she was the last link to a wise and ancient race.

If only the races of the world could find peace. Treat each other with tolerance. Hojo would have learned so much more from the Cetra and his tribe if he had asked rather than taking. Professor Gast's studies had provided so much information, just from talking to Ifalna. The videos they had watched in his old home were amazing. If Hojo had paid more attention, the Planet would not be in danger.

_What you see will eventually become a part of life's dream._

He wanted to make things better. Nanki knew he wanted to improve the Planet and help it heal.

_For my children... and for your children..._

Before that could begin, there would have to be some endings. Sephiroth had to be stopped. His end would be the start of so many beginnings. It was a shame to put an end to a warrior with his skill, but the madness in him was too much to be tolerated.

_So please, Nanaki... Go with Cloud... _

There was no question of whether or not he would return. There was no other choice. He would go and see things through to the end. He would fight for freedom to live and to choose and to make mistakes. He would fight for the hope of equality and understanding among all the people of the Planet.

It was his duty as a member of his tribe and as the son of Seto. He would fight for that duty... but it was more than that. It was his duty, but it was also an honor he had been given. People were trusting him with their lives. Not just his people, but people all over the Planet. Some had no idea that their lives rested in the hands of a few individuals... a ninja princess, a Cetra, a robot and the man behind him, a pilot, a jilted lover, a man, a woman, a father, a son.

_And with your eyes... _

It was his privilege to protect them all so they never knew how close the world would come to ending.

_Your ears..._

A/N: No I'm not dead. It has just taken me forever to get this piece the way I wanted it. Nearly half way done with this story. I hope you've enjoyed it so far.


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